Mistake
by HowardSqueakers
Summary: "You ever make a mistake?" I asked DiNozzo that before I let him stay at my house for a month. Last time he stayed for a weekend and I nearly lost it.


I don't handle overnight guests well. Actually, I don't handle guests well, period.

My ex-wives have often described that as being anti-social, as I prefer to spend the night with my boat over entertaining whichever person they had invited over. Small talk just isn't my strong suit.

So, whatever force caused me to allow one of my agents to stay at my house while his apartment building fixed the broken boiler I will never know. I don't know why he agreed either. He knew of my issues and, more specifically, remembered what happened last time he stayed with me.

And that had been for only a weekend. This time, it would be for a month.

Last time, was a disaster. For me at least. DiNozzo didn't seem to notice anything out of the ordinary.

I had actually forgotten he was staying with me. He'd made plans to go out with Abby that Friday after work so I was alone most of the night, down in the basement when he came stumbling in. I'd heard a grumbling voice coming from the living room and gone to see who was coming in at two a.m.

DiNozzo was halfway out of his suit and, when he saw me, nearly scared the rest of the way out.

"Uhh…hi, boss," he said with a nervous smile. "Thought you were already in bed."

I just nodded knowingly, muttered a quick good night and retreated upstairs to wash the sawdust off my aching shoulders. The last thing I remember asking myself before I went to bed was why I thought DiNozzo looked so good shirtless.

The next morning I woke up to the smell of coffee and breakfast. At first, I blamed it on dreams of my first wife – the only one I can say I genuinely loved – and tried to stay asleep as long as possible. Too bad my decade and a half in the Marines made "sleeping in" mean getting up at seven a.m.

My muscles protested when I stretched on my way downstairs but they usually felt better after I got coffee. But, this morning, that was going to have to wait.

If I thought DiNozzo had looked good without his shirt on, in only boxers he was just gorgeous. Thankfully his back was to me so he didn't see my reaction and I could watch him for a minute.

It was a side of my agent I'd never seen before. Sure, he smiled all the time on the job but not like the one I could _hear _in his voice as he sang quietly to himself. Watching him swing his hips in small circles was entertaining as well.

When he finally turned around and saw me, he wasn't scared out of his clothes. He just became _very _aware that his boss was seeing him in only boxers. The expression on his face as it dawned on him was priceless.

"Morning…boss," he stuttered with the same nervous smile from the night before.

A small smile formed as I moved to take the spoon from him.

"Go get dressed," I told him, ignoring the jolt I felt when our fingers brushed together. "I'll finish this."

As he rushed into the living room, I breathed a quiet sigh of relief. He hadn't noticed any change in my demeanor. When he came back minutes later, the stoic Marine he knew was back.

I can't really remember what happened that Saturday. I'm pretty sure I just ran errands with DiNozzo tagging along. Apparently, he hadn't made any other plans. We ended up in the basement that night with the boat and an immense amount of alcohol.

Sunday, however, is a different story. I remember _exactly_ what happened that day.

I woke up before DiNozzo this time and, figuring I'd return the favor, I started making breakfast.

Of course, the smell alerted Tony and he came in, once again, wearing nothing but boxers. He made a weird grunting noise as he stretched and pressed himself to my back.

"You're making pancakes?" he asked groggily before pressing a kiss to the back of my neck. "That's so nice."

When he pulled away, I thought it was because the sleep had stopped fogging his brain and he realized that he was talking to me and not some bombshell he'd probably been dreaming about.

I found out that wasn't the case when he nudged me out of the way and turned off the burner I'd been using before turning back to me and pressing me into the table.

"Didn't want anything to burn," he said as way of explanation.

I cleared my throat hoping, maybe, he would realize I was not who he thought I was and let me go before things got really awkward for the both of us.

When that didn't work, I tried saying his name…no luck. If anything, he pressed closer to me.

I even tried heapslapping him but, once again, he pressed closer to me, forcing me onto the table with him standing between my knees.

"How'd you know I love that?" he asked, his voice sounding weird. It was almost like he was…turned on?

I had a bad feeling about where we were headed. That fear was almost outweighed by the joy I felt knowing my junior agent wasn't as opposed to attraction between two males as I thought he was.

"Tony," I said forcefully – at least I hope that's how it sounded. "We gotta stop."

He pouted. "Why? I want you and…I think you want me too."

I gulped. _So he _had _noticed my looks these last few days. Crap._

"I'm right," he stated smugly.

Honestly, if he hadn't looked so cute, I may've had to smack him in the face. But it wasn't like he gave me a chance to react anyway.

While I tried to come up with a way to get DiNozzo away from me – much as I _didn't _want him to move – he moved even closer and pressed his lips to mine. At first, I wasn't sure how to react. I mean, I was sure he would realize that I wasn't the person he thought and stop. But then, I heard him growl happily and press in closer still. I couldn't wrap my head around a thought long enough for it to be verbalized and stayed frozen in place.

He pulled back slightly but it was only to ask me what was wrong, not enough to actually answer before he kissed me again. This time trying to put his tongue down my throat.

Okay, I'll admit it. If I had just pushed him off it may not have gotten so bad. But, in a moment of weakness, my attraction for the man took over and I felt myself start responding to the kiss. It wasn't until he tried to push me back on the table and climb on top of me that I stopped him.

"What's wrong?"

I took a deep breath before answering. "DiNozzo, we gotta stop."

The cute pout came back but this time had an air of sadness to it. He pulled away and stared at the floor.

"I guess I'll go take a shower," he muttered, "and let you finish this."

I heard him curse and mutter to himself as he left the kitchen and almost felt bad about pushing him away.

Okay, that's a lie. I _did_ feel bad but I had no other choice. Not only was I his boss but I wasn't entirely convinced he knew it was me he'd just been kissing, let alone if he was okay with it.

"What the hell is wrong with you, Marine?" I scolded myself. "You may have just ruined your life."

As much as I hated how that sounded, especially in the empty kitchen, I knew it was true. If DiNozzo realized that I was the one he was kissing and freaked, he could report me and say I took advantage of him.

_Oh crap. I really screwed the pooch on this one. _

I tried to ease my worrying by focusing on the interrupted breakfast. It helped for a little bit but, when he came back fresh from his shower, my breath caught in my throat. I just swallowed and tried to appear as if nothing had happened.

"Hey, boss, I don't think I'm going to be drinking at your house any time soon."

I chuckled. "Why is that?"

The younger man ran a hand through his hair and laughed nervously. "I think I had a really weird dream last night."

_He thinks it was a dream? _I thought. _That makes things so much easier._

"Care to share?"

I was honestly just wondering if he would actually tell me. Apparently, he hadn't been expecting that. He opened and closed his mouth several times, deciding how to respond, before just eating his breakfast quietly and avoiding my eyes.

"You don't have to if ya don't want," I told him. "Just trying to make this less awkward of a meal for ya."

He cleared his throat a few times and, still avoiding my gaze, started talking.

"Well, it was…it was about you," he stuttered. "And something…happened."

"Uh-huh. And what was this 'something'?"

Tony shook his head. "It was nothing, boss. Just too much bourbon last night, I guess."

I smiled knowingly. "You're not gonna tell me are ya?"

He gave me a toothy smile and just continued eating in silence. I wasn't about to press the issue and let it go.


End file.
